There’s Something Familiar about this Corona?

I recently came across the Corona Familiar at Costco. This beer came in a 32oz bottle, and 12 beers in a case. This is the first time I have seen this beer, but doing a bit of research, I found out the the Corona Familiar has been around for a few years now. Just looking at the bottle, the natural question that came up was: What is the difference between Corona Familiar and Corona Extra? I had to find out, because there’s no information on the box, the bottle, or even Modelo’s website.

So What’s the difference?
I had my first sip of this beer, and I said to myself “this tastes familiar”. It may seem like a bad pun, but it is true. If you try this beer, it will taste a lot like Corona Extra, but with something different. My initial reaction was that it has more flavor; same taste, just a richer flavor. To make sure I was not psychologically making myself to believe there was something different, I had to do a taste test between the two beers. In pouring the beers, you cannot see any difference in color; they are both very light in color. After tasting both, my conclusion was exactly what I suspected. The Corona Extra taste like a Corona (of course), but the Familiar has a richer flavor. It is a much better beer.

Both Coronas have the same Color. Are they the same?

Some people have said that there is no difference between the two, just a bigger brown bottle. I believe that is true. When you look at the bottle cap of the Familiar, it says “Corona Extra”. I believe the difference is only in the brown bottle. It is as if Corona has created their own little experiment to see if the brown bottle make a difference in the beer. If that is the case, the conclusion must be that a brown bottle helps preserve the flavor of the beer.

Corona Extra has always been a light, smooth beer. For this reason, I thought it was foolish that a Corona Light exists (unfortunately it does). Perhaps the brewers always had a problem with Corona Extra. Perhaps they were accustomed to tasting something different than what was coming out of the standard, clear bottle. I have no clue. I am just glad I made this taste test, because I now have more appreciation for the Corona brand. Corona Familiar is a really good beer. I look forward to seeing it in a 12oz size.

Random bit of nonsense:
I love comparing prices anytime something is in bulk. I usually buy the best beer that is on sale. A 32oz bottle is 4oz shy of 3 beers. A 12 pack of 32oz Corona Familiar will cost $35 at Costco. That is $0.09 /oz or $1.08 per 12oz beer. Buying a standard premium beer at Costco will cost $23 for 24/12oz bottles. That is equal to $0.96 per beer. The Corona Familiar is a slightly more expensive beer and the bottle size is not user friendly. It is worth buying this beer, but you will only want to have one when you intend to do a lot of drinking in one sitting.